Kimkim Trip Reviews

I have been asked to write a review of my experience with Kim Kim and for me in particular Luciana who was my representative in Brazil.

This tour was something I do not do - when traveling I usually ensure family are available to look after me but I decided to take a risk.

Luciana poor dear was inundated with questions / concerns / reservations from the time I decided to make the booking. Her patience / professionalism and efficiency was first class throughout.

When I eventually arrived in Brazil it was raining - my tour guide who met me at the airport was very supportive and took me around to a few places of interest and for a meal.

The official tour was in a coach / bus that took me and a group who I knew none of the to places of interest- but when we hit sugar loaf mountain / cable car ride and the famous Christ statue that is when my breath was taken away - the view was stunning.

We then went to a restaurant for a nice buffet.

After I walked on my own on Copacabana beech and had a greater experience - food / people / music / sea / sunshine- what a rush.

I felt safe at all times even with shop keepers who knew I did not know the local language.

My holiday started with a very skeptical attitude and has ended with my thinking how to plan the next one if God spares my life.

The holiday was wonderful and has to be repeated- just walking on the beech alone is a holiday in itself.

To Kim Kim - Lucinda and her crew - thank you for making a miserable old fart of a middle aged man have an experience of a lifetime

Rating - mega great

Kevin Moses

We booked the whole CostaRica 10 days tour through KimKim. The people who helped us with planning and while we were on vacation were extremely helpful. They answered all our questions and made several changes to the itinerary, activities, and hotels to accommodate us. The activities were planned well, the travel from one destination to another was nicely arranged. We stayed at three hotels - Hotel Arenal Manoa, Senda Monteverde and Shana at Manuel Antonio. The hotels Arenal Manoa and Senda were of luxury style. Senda's service was just extra-ordinary. However, the hotel Shana, its food, and its service are not of luxury caliber. My only suggestion is for the KimKim team to review this hotel before recommending it as a luxury option.

Milenka was excellent to work with. She was very responsive to my many questions while planning the trip and was very flexible and helpful when we had to make a major change a few weeks before embarking on the trip. All of the guides, drivers and planned experiences were absolutely wonderful.

Jack was exceptional. From the planning stages to the end of the trip, Jack was always willing to accommodate my numerous requests to customise the trip.

In addition to the standard plans, Jack helped me to plan the whole trip to meet my specific requirements. Even when some of the guides were not up to the expectations, Jack was quick to get involved and sort things out for me.

I would definitely recommend Jack for anyone visiting Myanmar!

We are so pleased we chose Kimkim to organise our Moroccan adventure. Our driver, our accommodation, our itinerary, our guides - everything was incredibly well executed and communicated. We saw tour buses everywhere and were so glad that our trip was customised and local. We wouldn't hesitate to recommend Hakim and his team.

My family is a very active bunch and we love adventure and keeping busy. We certainly had all of this on our vacation. Randall listened to what we wanted, and was easy to contact regarding changes in plans and what we wanted to do. We spent the first half of our trip at La Fortuna and the second half in Manuel Antonio. Our accommodations at Manuel Antonio were fabulous, with outrageous views, helpful staff, spacious for our family of 6. I usually like to plan my own trips, but having Randall took a lot of the load off and it was nice having someone to help out when issues arose.

Oliver,
First, let me say that we enjoyed our trip and have no regrets. Kimkim and you generally did an excellent job. The hotels were generally a pleasure, with a great deal of character. There were odds and ends they could do better, but we were quite happy with them. The pace we had worked out gradually before the trip was just about right. We had enough time to simply wander on our own, which we value. I think there is a tendency to try to pack in too much, and we were glad we had pushed back a little to ensure a more relaxing pace.
In terms of the tours, the fishing tour at Cartagena was the highlight, because it was so participatory, but the tour of Cartagena town was extremely well done too. The guide was really knowledgeable and enjoyed sharing his knowledge of Cartagena with us. The tour in Tayrona Park was fine, but I only managed two hours of the four-hour activity. The guide did a good job of substituting a route I could manage. On the tours, our one general comment is that it would be helpful to have a more detailed idea of what is involved ahead of time. I wonder if it would be possible for the tour provider to get on the phone with the customer the day before the tour to go over what is planned and answer any questions.
The only significant problems were on the Amazon part of the trip. We arrived in mid-afternoon and were met, though by people from a different organization than you had mentioned. There was an excellent translator, someone hired just for our visit. She provided the continuity for our trip but because she had not worked with the organization before, she was learning how they worked as we went along. We asked for an itinerary for the four days in the Amazon, but no one seemed to know the program beyond the broadest terms. We should have had the time to sit down with someone from the agency to discuss a detailed itinerary and should have spent that night in Leticia, repacking for the field. Instead, right off the plane, we were taken to their office and asked to repack for the trek, to don rubber boots to go to meet an indigenous leader that afternoon. We walked for an hour or two on muddy roads to a large traditional home to listen to a community leader hold forth on the traditional devotion to the environment and brotherly love. To be honest, it wasn’t worth the trek. We stayed that night in a local hotel that was basic but very well managed. We were told that the next day we would walk a half hour to an indigenous facility called Merisha on a lagoon near the Amazon, in Peru. From our earlier communications I gather you had been told it was not too ambitious a trek for me. I was told the same thing, that it would be a half-hour walk through the jungle.
I can only say that that assessment wildly off base. Much to the trip was wading through flooded jungle, through thick growth, water up to our knees, negotiating brambles and poor footing and tangled roots underwater. There were swarms of mosquitos and other biting insects. It was a very challenging trek even for my wife and because her boots were not high enough, the guide had to carry her on his back at several deeper places. He provided interesting insights as we went but it took us nearly three hours to complete the walk, without a stop. We arrived at Merisha absolutely exhausted.
Facilities in Merisha were rudimentary but of course we expected that. The lagoon and river there were magical and the guide was very competent, and inspired confidence. We never felt insecure, just exhausted tired and frustrated. Frustrated because on arrival at Merisha we found tourists arriving on day trips, having come by boat on a flooded road a stone’s throw from where we had embarked on our trek. We demanded to return from Merisha by boat and at first this was resisted. Later, it was agreed to if we paid extra (not much). It was an easy trip and took twenty to thirty minutes.
There seem to have been failures in communications between Kimkim and the local agency and between the local agency and the contractors they used. I think I made my condition clear before the trip and cannot imagine how anyone imagined I wanted to deal with an ordeal like the trip to Merisha.
In our earlier discussion you had stressed that it anything seemed to much, we could simply not to it. That seemed reasonable at the time. But it assumes an informed decision, and we were not always given enough information and sometimes given incorrect information. Plus, once you are a couple of miles into the jungle and you realize what you have gotten into, and the guide tells you it is just as far to go back as to go ahead, just dropping out is not an option.
The next day, back on the Amazon, we embarked on a mototboat trip involving several stops, interesting and not too tiring. Again, the translator was very helpful. The only downer was at a monkey island park where we were swarmed by tiny monkeys. One snatched my hat and another scratched (bit?) the top of my head badly enough for it to bleed. Fortunately, we and the translator had first aid supplies. I believe it was a scratch and not a bite but I will see my doctor tomorrow and get a rabies shot, just to be on the safe side.
When after the boat ride we returned to Leticia, we were taken to the office of the local agency to retrieve our suitcases and go to our hotel. The hotel was an older place, and at first seemed ok. But our room was an ugly share of green, and bare except for a couple of metal frame beds with matresses made up with sheets and pillows. It felt like a hostel room, just with fewer beds. There was a small unattractive bathroom and no hot water, indeed to water was icy. After three days in the jungle, dirty, our hair matted with sunscreen and insecticide, and bone tired, the hotel was an extremely disappointment. After I googled other hotels in Leticia, and found there were much better options, we asked to be moved. You declined to do so, saying that the local agent had made the arrangement and was the one who had to deal with it. After one quite unpleasant interview with a woman who had arranged the trip and was remarkably rude, the local agency’s logistics chief turned up and moved us to a better hotel, at their cost. We appreciated it very much. I did not appreciate your washing your hands of the situation.
I think you can see that the Amazon portion fell short of expectations. We would do it again but mistakes were made that should have been avoided, largely through failures to communicate expectations clearly, I suspect. I think all concerned had good intentions but I do hope that future travelers to the Amazon with KimKim can arrive with clearer expectations and find fewer surprises.
Best, John Bruce

I had a great time in China. My tour guides were great! Shout out to the guides Yan, Fish Lee, and Run for the great service. Also, the drivers got us to each location safe and sound and they are very much appreciated. I really enjoyed all of our sightseeing locations. One of my most memorable activities was the dumpling making class in Xi’an. The local family was very nice and cooked some very delicious dishes for us. Great hospitality! Overall, I had a very positive experience booking with KimKim, who referred us to Peicy, our travel consultant, and I am looking forward to our next trip!

I was hesitant about using an online travel agent but Randall was great; arranging and rearranging the schedule and activities as our plans evolved. The trip to Costa Rica was fantastic and is the best vacation I’ve had, ever! There is such a lush concentration of plants and every kind of living thing. Our accommodations were all first rate, we particularly enjoyed the El Establo Hotel at Monteverde. We traveled Jan 1-Jan 13 and enjoyed excellent weather, were never rained on in the daytime. We had several nature tours and a fab zip line excursion in Monteverde. Check out one of our guides Instagram sites: Jpablo_cruz226. We also visited the Mt Arenal area and a memorable highlight for us was the river cruise on the Rio Frío in the Cano Negro reserve with guide Joudan, who was especially knowledgeable. All the transfers and flights that Randall arranged for us went off without a hitch; we found two of the drivers, Jose and Jorge most helpful and professional. We also had a rented car and adventures driving the winding bumpy roads. If we had been choosing our own vehicle it would have been under powered and wrong for the terrain; but with a good travel agent to help we enjoyed the ride! We also had a cool domestic flight in a teensy plane to round out our transportation experience. It was great to see the ocean, jungle, crop lands, and mountains from a birds eye view. Sansa Air was excellent.

Emeline did a phenomenal job carefully exploring and matching our desired sites, interests, activities, budget and timeframe with an action-packed itinerary and travel arrangements that were perfect for our family’s first trip to New Zealand. Having limited knowledge of the country nor time to plan ourselves, we really relied on Emeline’s expertise and guidance. She did not let us down! Highlights included mountain biking in the Redwoods Forest of Rotorua, hiking the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, wine tasting in Martinborough, whitewater rafting in Queenstown, a cruise on the Milford Sound, exploring the Te Anau Glowworm caves, jet boating and hiking along the Matukituki River by Wanaka and hiking the Hooker Valley in the shadow of Aoraki Mount Cook. She really helped us to optimize our 15 days, steering us away from locations that were not feasible if we wanted to contain time we’d spend in the car each day, while suggesting local highlights to take in as we travelled. We especially enjoyed our boutique, B&B accommodations in Rotorua, Wanaka and Twizel. Emeline and the Once Upon a Trip team were very responsive to our last minute booking requests and any questions we had. Trip was a success... our adult daughters want to travel again with us! Looking forward to our next trip to New Zealand and engaging Emeline in the planning!

Anne was outstanding from initial contact, providing excellent advice during the planning phase and at every point during the trip. Nothing seemed too much trouble and she certainly goes the extra mile. The trip was wonderful and full of surprises. The daily itineraries were well balanced but it felt like every day had an unexpected bonus whether it was e-bikes in Bagan or the Irrawaddy cruise boat in Mandalay. We also loved meeting Anne in Mandalay. This was easily the best organised holiday we have had and we have had many. Our high expectations for the trip were exceeded.
We loved Myanmar and the people. The guides (Wai, Nay, Thinzar and Naing) were all superb....knowledgeable, enthusiastic, flexible and charming.
We were glad we did the trip in the order we did (Yangon, Mandalay, Bagan, Inle Lake) as highlights increased as we moved through the locations. There were certainly many highlights but the balloon trip over Inle Lake probably takes the accolade.
The hotels have all been great, with the Sanctum Inle Lake up there as amongst the best that we we have ever stayed in!
I also think the holiday was excellent value. So all in all a holiday to remember.

It would have been a lot better if ferry timings were taken into planning. We reached Bodø on Saturday from Oslo, not much to do. On Sunday ferry to Lofoten was not till 1 pm so lost morning. Reached Lofoten at 4.30 pm it was pitch dark so not much to see . So literally 2 wasted days Hurtigruten to Tromso cancelled no one’s fault . Rushed to Ice hotel that evening. That was fun
Next day after dog sledding we waited 2 hrs for nothing before getting dropped at hotel .
Christmas evening and day Tromso was shut so we stayed at hotel . Last evening was good we got to see northern lights so it was good
I think days could have been better planned depending on local closings . That was the purpose of getting a local planner. I received car refunds but not Hurtigruten refund

I arranged my trip with Bilal not Yasantha. Arrangements for my trip was good. Not perfect only because initially Yasantha never returned my calls. Bilal was good but also not great at returning calls. Bilal did a good job planning my trip. Once I got to Srilanka my driver was excellent. Excursions and hotels were great also.

We had a super time and felt very supported. Chio was there for every little question I had! All the drivers, hotels and tour people were on-time and extra nice. I'm so pleased.

My 23-year-old daughter and I chose to visit Myanmar to learn more about the fascinating culture, history, political transitions, and people there. Anne planned an 11-day adventure for us which far exceeded any expectations. We had an amazing time!

First, I will say that I barely needed to communicate with Anne. She “got” how I travel almost immediately and my trust in her decisions was gave me no worry. I could focus on the rest of my travels and the rest of my life. We spent the first two nights at the Mercure in Mandalay. Nay was the first of several guides Anne arranged. Each of them is OUTSTANDING! Nay has spent a lot of time guiding trekkers, which we were not on this trip, and so he led us on a beautiful bike ride through the countryside outside of the city. We opted to start and end inside the city and I’m happy we did. We could handle the busy streets and we got to see some interesting sites. In the outskirts we stopped several times to learn about different industries and had lunch at a nunnery, which prepared and educated us on this fascinating side to Myanmar culture that we revisited everywhere we went. Nay also showed us other Mandalay sites — the sunset from high up, the World’s Biggest Book and the last remaining building from the former Royal Palace. Nay is lovely!

Our next two nights were spent aboard the Strand Cruise, motoring down the Irrawaddy. We visited U-Bein Bridge, Mingun, and Ava. Site visits included a tuk-tuk ride and a horse and cart ride…so fun. And the boat accommodations were wonderful. We upgraded our room upon arrival because there was a larger one available and the staff could not have been nicer. The entire crew deserve incredible accolades! All the details, the food, the excursions (Aung was our guide from The Strand Cruise), the entertainment, the rooms, everything was lovely. On the second evening dinner was served shoreside BBQ style. The crew had string lights, a bonfire, music, and had raked the sand into intricate patterns. Magical!

Our next two nights were in Bagan, which I could go back to tomorrow! We loved it. Numbers vary but I’ll use 8,000 — temples, pagodas and other religious monuments litter the landscape and sparkle with their gold. Thin was our guide in Bagan and she is really engaging. She grew up literally among the temples and was moved by the government to New Bagan before the site became a UNESCO site. I was super excited when we arrived at the e-bike stand to get our bikes, but my daughter was not. No problem…Thin just put her on the back of her bike and off we went! That is the way to travel there, scooting among the temples on the small pathways. We saw a LOT of incredible temples, each unique and full of stories. We visited a lacquer workshop where Thin’s mom used to work. They give a wonderful and really impressive explanation of the process. It will wow anyone, the amount of labor involved. We stayed at the Aureum Palace, which, if in your budget, is worth it! It’s in the middle of the site and I’ll bet one could not build a hotel there anymore. Views are stunning. The next morning was an early one for our balloon ride. Again, if in the budget DO IT! Enough said. That afternoon, another DO NOT MISS: May’s cooking class. May could run a Fortune 500. She had the 12 of us from 3:30 to 7:30. We made 21 dishes in her back patio on eight open flame wood stoves. She introduced all the ingredients, let us make choices, gave assignments for prep and manning the stoves. Everyone participated, everyone learned and the spread on the table was so impressive. I’ve been doing these cooking classes in various places on my travels and this one tops them all. May was so well organized that we were just finishing up the meal when our guide came to collect us. Not easy to do! As we were walking out, we passed an open garage facing the street filled with books on shelves, because May runs a free library for her community. 🙂

The next morning we took the first of our two in-country flights to Heho and drove to Kalaw. There, we met our next guide, Naing, who we LOVED! (Recommended reading: The Art of Hearing Heartbeats and A Well-Tempered Heart by Jan-Philipp Sendker). We stopped at Pindaya to visit the famous cave filled with thousands of Buddhas…pretty crazy! And we stopped at a local home to learn about their tea crops and the famous tea leaf salad, and at a local market for bulls, and the local every-five-day market which happened to fall on that day. We stayed overnight in Kalaw Heritage Hotel in order to drive the next morning to the Green Hill Valley Elephant Camp, a retirement home for logging elephants. We spent the day feeding and bathing the eight elephants in residence there, learning about their history and medical requirements, and eating a delicious lunch. I could go on an on about these beautiful animals, and certainly our phones are filled with special images of our time spent with them…it’s a special, special place and so beautiful. I would like to retire there. We drove to Inle Lake afterwards, which is where Naing grew up. We stayed at the beautiful Aureum Palace Resort on Inle. Naing picked us up the next morning by boat for a full day on the water. This was another highlight. We chose to visit a lotus fiber weaving factory and a silver factory. Then we had the most amazing experience: Naing took us to his home, where his sister-in-law cooked us a delicious meal and we got to sit around and chat (with Naing’s help) with his aunties and his mom, who put thanaka on us. His home is a traditional wooden one on pillars lining the lake. Wandering after lunch over bridges and alongside homes, and experiencing Naing chat with everyone he passed was really special. He is special.

We flew to Yangon the next morning to meet our final guide, Sandar. Each one of our guides, carefully chosen and nurtured by Anne, are young, eager, enthusiastic, transparent, delightful people. Our experience throughout our journey would not have been possible without them. And it’s clear that Anne knows how to not only find the right people, but communicate and manage them too. Sandi is adorable. The best way to learn about cultures is by sitting down to eat with local people. We did that throughout our trip. In Yangon, with Sandi, the experience was even more immersive. She is so chatty and funny and sweet. A simple stop at a street stand because my daughter was hungry, turned into an experience with crickets, the difference in taste between males and females, which ones her husband would like her to bring home, and more. Hilarious. Sandi guided us through the famous Shwedagon Pagoda the next day. I was really glad we organized the trip this direction, from Mandalay to Yangon, finishing with this impressive site. We went in the evening of the local new year, so it was a bustling scene, beautiful with the moon and the people and the spirituality of it all. A wonderful way to conclude our journey.

My daughter and I highly recommend Anne, Myanmar Pure and kimkim as travel planners. I’ve planned many trips in my life and just didn’t have the bandwidth. Anne connected with my request and created the exact experience I was hoping for. My daughter repeatedly said, “This is the best trip I’ve ever been on, Mommy.” Is there anything better? And we cannot wait to return someday to Myanmar — to connect with such a diversity of people, walk and ride through so many beautiful places, eat the delicious food, and feel the spirituality. Thank you!

Patagonia was a once in a lifetime trip for me & my wife for our honeymoon. It was everything we could have hoped for and more. Erin helped to meticulously plan the trip throughout with her fantastic knowledge of the local areas and activities.
There were so many highlights including: wine tasting in the Casablanca valley, trekking to the base of the towers in Torres del Paine, horseback riding in Puerto Natales, white water rafting in El Chalten and an amazing zodiac boat trip down the Magellan Strait.
However, of particular note was Patagonia Camp. This place was an absolute treat for us staying in a luxury yurt in the middle of the Patagonian wilderness. I would highly recommend it.
Overall the trip was very well organised. There were a couple of instances where some of the timings for pickups were slightly out (so worth double checking timings!) but this was quickly and easily resolved during our travels with no effect on our enjoyment of the trip.

Our 10 day trip to Colombia was a very memorable one. We weren't sure what to expect, but were pleasantly surprised. Beautiful country and people. Natalia was extremely helpful and responsive to all our questions, queries and concerns. she was connected via whats app and available for any questions during our trip. Since our trip was in December, she was even working on the 25th addressing our needs. From putting the itinerary together and catering to our specific requirements; Natalia was awesome. we had 8 versions of the plan and she patiently helped us with tips and recommendations. The two of the tour guides she arranged were excellent; Claudio who was our guide in the Amazon and Carlos Valencia in Medellin.
This was our first trip via KimKim and very happy.

Overall this was a great trip, from the planning phase to the actual trip and destinations. Brahim the local travel agent was very responsive by email and did a great job in answering all our questions. We had some doubt about the size of the car as we had 3 adults, 2 kids and luggage, but Brahim ensured that the vehicle would be large enough for us. Sure enough it was a 3 row van and very comfortable for the long driving days (max one day was 6.5hrs), with stops of course.

Things to be aware of:
The riads in Fez and Marrakesh were amazing. These are big cities and accommodations are not an issue, stay in riads if you want an authentic experience.
The hotel in Chefchaouen was sub-par, but we contacted Brahim and he quickly addressed the issues and provided us with an acceptable solution.

All cities, towns and villages were an amazing experience. Special shout out to our driver Amine, who was more than we could ever had hoped for. Polite, great with the kids, knowledgeable and kept us on time every day. Note: the driver and car is a BIG part of this type of trip as you are spending a lot of time in the car, so you really want it to be setup right.

We would use KimKim again in the future for any customized travel plans, their website is very easy to navigate.

Thank you everyone!

Trip of a lifetime to Morrocco

We wanted to take a holiday with our three children to visit a new country to experience the culture, people, history and experience new things.

KimKim delivered a tour/trip that could not have been better. Abdel’s local experience in Morocco coupled with his honest, caring and hard-working attitude paved the way for this trip to become a reality. We did not have to worry about a thing once on the ground due to his colleague Samir. Samir took care of our family like they were his own.

When we venture out again and look to explore another part of the world, we will trust KimKim to handle every detail. They are experienced, professional and above all, honest and realistic about the details and expectations.

My children and I had our health put at risk by the disgusting state of the accommodation on the trek. We were not told to bring bedding. We booked a luxury accommodation package at $20,000 usa for three people ( two of which were sharing a room) and 11 days. We were booked into accommodation with no running water no power and no heating. We had to beg every 30 minutes to keep the central wood burning kettle stove alight. We had no room heating in any lodge. The last lodge was a filthy $30 a night tea house. My daughters were reduced to tears when they saw the mouldy bathrooms, stained beds with no sheets.
It was -15 degrees inside and out. We had not been told to bring sleeping bags. in fact we were told not to.
We were defrauded into a holiday of very low standard while paying a premium price. A number of the properties we visited would be closed by Australian standards for health issues.
Both Raj and Kripa were very keen to take out money while there was a great lack in their knowledge of the properties and service provided. They basically stole our money and our annual holiday together. You should be ashamed of yourselves for this calous and dangerous treatment of other human beings. You will never be forgiven for such a terrible and dangerous situation. I would like to talk personally to Max the owner of mountain trails to alert him to the dangerous undertakings of his Nepal team.